BANGKOK — Thailand’s border trade with Cambodia plunged by 99.9% in September as the closure of checkpoints along the conflict-hit frontier entered its fifth month, officials said Wednesday.
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul dismissed rumors that crossings would reopen on November 1, insisting that Thailand will not resume trade until Cambodia withdraws heavy weapons, clears landmines, cooperates on tackling scammer networks, and restores diplomatic relations.
Anutin and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet signed an expanded ceasefire agreement on October 26 in Malaysia, with U.S. President Donald Trump and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim present at the signing. However, the border remains closed.
“People keep saying we will reopen soon, but Thailand will not yield,” Anutin said. “Cambodia must first take concrete steps before reopening is even considered.”
According to Arada Fueangthong, Director-General of the Department of Foreign Trade, total border and transit trade in September stood at 141.7 billion baht ($3.8 billion), down 4.7% from a year earlier. Exports fell 12.4% to 74.9 billion baht, while imports rose 5.9% to 66.8 billion baht, leaving a surplus of 8.2 billion baht.
Trade with Cambodia virtually collapsed to just 11 million baht, while trade with Myanmar dropped 40% amid fuel export restrictions and tighter import controls by Naypyitaw. Trade with Malaysia and Laos rose 4.7% and 8.8%, respectively.
Border trade overall fell 22.2% year-on-year in September, its fifth straight month of decline. Diesel, concentrated latex, and refined oils were Thailand’s top export items.
From January to September, total border and transit trade reached 1.48 trillion baht, up 7.7% year-on-year, with exports rising 5.4% and imports 10.8%, resulting in a surplus of 196.9 billion baht.
Transit trade, which includes goods transported through neighboring countries to third markets, climbed 14.2% in September to 81.6 billion baht. Exports via Singapore soared 60.7%, while shipments to Vietnam rose 31.3% and to China 9.9%.
The fastest-growing export categories included telephones and accessories (+231,928%), computers (+57.6%), and hard disk drives (+105.5%).
Despite strong regional transit trade, the collapse in Cambodian border commerce underscored the deep impact of the ongoing political and security tensions between the two neighbors.